The LoCA Life & Times

In Lodi, wine comes first. And we wouldn’t have it any other way. Meet the passionate people behind our handcrafted wines and gnarly old vines.

May 4, 2011 |
Randy Caparoso

Plan your ZinFest wines ahead!

Understatement of the year: there will be a lot of terrific wines to taste at the 2011 Lodi ZinFest Wine Festival on Saturday, May 14 (12-6 PM) at Lodi Lake Park. Over 250 of them, produced by over 50 participating wineries.

Therefore it might be a good idea to plan ahead, and save your palate for the wines you’d really like to try. To help you make those plans, here is a list of wines you will see at the Saturday ZinFest, along with a few insights and average retail prices:

Gnarly Head – It’s official, Gnarly Head makes the best selling Zinfandel in the world. In Sweden, Gnarlyheads even have their own Facebook page (in Swedish, of course… vad vin Zinfandel?).

Bokisch Vineyards – Bad news first: this Spanish grape specialist makes nothing but blue chip wines that make you go dm (that’s omg in Spanish… or ¡dios mío!). So do yourself a favor and saunter over to the Boiksich table first… and try them all.

Brazin & Loredona – Two more must-try sub-labels produced by Manteca’s Indelicato family; Brazin the acclaimed, award winning, bold and blustery “big brother” to the super-popular Gnarly Head zin, and Loredona the label for a breathtakingly fresh, zesty, perfumed Viognier.

Harney Lane Winery – One of Lodi’s most acclaimed wineries, owned and grown by one of the strands of the historic Mettler family. Harney Lane’s zins, especially, are setting the contemporary standards, as told in one of our previous posts, The farmer is the man.

2010 Albariño ( $19)
2010 Rosé ($17)
2008 Zinfandel ($22)

House of Zin – Dave Dart’s (of d’Art Wines) new zin-only label… be one of the first to try it!

2009 Winemakers Blend #3 Zinfandel ($18)

Hux Vineyards – Another one of Lodi’s exciting, new cutting-edge Spanish grape specialists.

LangeTwins Winery & Vineyards – The Langes may be another one of Lodi’s multi-generation run, big time grower/families, but their wines are anything but “usual”: rich, fleshy, fresh, focused, pure, luscious, sexy, elegant… everything everyone is looking for in contemporary styled wines…

m2 Wines – Winemaker/owner Layne Mongomery is an unabashed aesthete, and an awesomely talented one at that. His wines would take any zin lover through the longest, darkest nights. Also look for the 2011 ZinFest commemorative bottling done by Montgomery (an ’09, which we wrote about here). Gotta luv it!

Macchia Wines – A stop at the Macchia table to taste winemaker/proprietor Tim Holdener’s latest super-powered, single vineyard releases is always a ZinFest high point, and why should it be any different on May 14th?

McCay Cellars – Some say everyday is a good hair day for Donald Trump and Justin Bieber, and if you stop by and say hello to winemaker/owner Michael McCay, you’ll find out why he doesn’t care: especially since it’s been a great day for zin lovers everywhere, ever since McCay started coming out with his intensely expressive, beautifully spiced and refined wines (also see Mr. McCay at the ZinFest Wine School).

Mettler Family Vineyards – Does Mettler make Lodi’s finest Cabernet Sauvignon? Few connoisseurs would dispute that, although everything this distinguished family grows and produces is unequivocably fine and intense.

Michael David Winery – Who has done more to spread the prestige of Lodi grown wine around the world these past ten or so years than the Phillips family (led by Michael and David Phillips)? That’s right… nobody. Not only that, their wines just get better and better. Mandatory tasting for every ZinFest enthusiast:

Peltier Station – After you taste Peltier Station’s lineup, you’ll seriously wonder why people who don’t drink Lodi pay too much for their wine. Read about their outrageously rich, fine Pinot Noir in Hybrid is shaking trees, and then make a beeline to this table…

St. Amant Winery – Winemaker Stuart Spencer has continued the winegrowing of his father — the late, legendary Tim Spencer — and St. Amant has remained the Lodi standard bearer for ancient vine Zinfandel sourced from the heralded Mohr-Fry Ranches (read about this heritage vineyard in talkin’ ’bout generations).

St. Jorge Winery – Guaranteed, proprietors Vern and Jenise Vierra’s table will be one of the most hospitable, and downright good looking, table in ZinFest. Their wines are equally grand and attractive.

St. Sophia – Nothing like a spanking new, exciting winery — come by and check out these bright, fresh wines produced from classic head trained old vines.

2007 Zinfandel ($22)
2008 Zinfandel $22)

Stama Winery – This winery has already been creating a zinsation with their generous, curvaceous reds at competitions like the Beverage Institute World Wine Championships and the Lodi Consumer Wine Awards.

Van Ruiten Family Winery – What top award has VR not won for their incredible zins? These wines have been appealing to the most discriminating critics and consumers alike precisely for their impeccable balance and sheer, joyful depth of zinfandelishness.

Vicarmont Vineyards & Winery– The team of proprietors Vic and Carrie Mettler, and consulting winemaker Heather Pyle (formerly of Robert Mondavi and Opus One, and today with The Lucas Wineryin Lodi) sculpt elegantly rich wines of worldly elegance, with a fruit forward purity that has been the hallmark of Lodi. In a word: compelling…

Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Winery – The attention to detail and devotion to food friendly, elegant wines initiated by legendary founder Robert Mondavi continues in this Lodi based winery. You’ll be hard pressed to find better wines at any price than these strong value bottlings: